All Forum Posts by: Alan Polaski

Hi BP community.  I'm an avid BP pod cast listener, although maybe not as religious as some of you out there.  I listened to every episode since about number 80 or 90, plus as few prior I've searched out.  Additionally, I keep a quote board that I've assembled over the last year with many business good quotes, and add some from time to time that resonate with me.

A male pod cast guest said "I've never lost money.  I have however invested heavily in my education."  I thought this was great.

So my two questions:

Who said this?  I never caught his name at the time.  It was probably in an episode in about the mid 200s. I'd like to credit the man accurately to his quote, and right now I have it  listed as Unknown.

What are your favorite business/success quotes? 

Mine  - "Whether you think you can, or you think you can't, you are right." - Henry Ford

I'm curious why you are going strait to new build for your first investment? I'm not saying it is a bad idea, and that it hasn't crossed my mind. But it seems to me the overwhelming discussion on BP is about finding properties at a significant market discount and adding value to build instant equity. I see risks both ways, especially for someone with no/little experience. Do you expect to got your money back out on a refinance and BRRRR again?

Please explain more why you want to go in that direction.  Your opening pros v cons list isn't painting a fully persuasive picture yet for new builds.

I'm new to the game as well, so don't take my word as great advice at this point.  I've been using rentometer.com as my potential rent in my analysis so far.  It deffinately has a present in the USA, but I'm not sure in Denmark.  Perhaps there is another similar tool if not. There is a fee to use it repeatedly (the first handful of uses are free). Also, another mentor-ish type person I've spoken with mentioned he has his property manager determine his rents.  They know the markets he owns in and what the market and his properties can get.  Again, may be USA specific

Short of that, I'd think maybe calling on a couple of units that are for rent in your area to see what other landlords are asking.  Much more labor intensive, but you could start buying your own dataset to compare against cheaply if you have lots of time and not much money.

Congratulations!!  Many people are blinded by the negativity and can't see the upside in real estate.  Great job!

@Michael S. Thanks, and Joseph too. I do have a couple of school districts identified as my narrowed target market. I didn’t go into all that detail in the initial post but I’ve got a decent list clarified for property must haves. I’m working with a couple agents, and have done some driving for dollars I’m really over the last few months. I have a list of addresses that I started mailing to, but haven’t finished. Hence, the taking action, again.

I'm assuming your contingencies were written in the offer?  I'm no expert, in fact I have very little RE experience compared to many on this site, so feel free to throw my thoughts right in the trash.  So seems to me you could lower your offer now that you have walked through and still be abiding by your contract.

If you just resubmitted your offer with a lower price, I could see the seller simply disregarding it out of spite.  But if you provide some background to the lower price, it might have merit.  "I expected to see a granite kitchen with updated appliances, but it doesn't..."  Or "I expected hardwood floors through out, like most of the neighborhood has, but it doesn't..."  With this, you might keep their interest in your offer and have them consider is without feeling insulted.

Also, if appraisal come back at your original offer or higher, then you are screwed.  Hoping for a lower appraisal so you can get a lower price seems like a bad plan from a number of angles.

Zeeshan, I can relate one of the comments you made in a response about getting into the market at a bad time.  I'm trying to break into the game and have the same concerns.  I'm wrestling with the fear of getting into a property at the top of the market in a marginal or bad deal, just for the sake of getting into the game and getting some real experience that isn't coming to me through my headphones or on paper.  Then if the market does tank, all my cash is tied up in a bad deal and I can't move on the good deals that start to show up.

I've heard many people say it is better to just get started, so that is what I want to do.  I'm looking at doing that with a partner so that I can minimize possible newbie mistakes.

As for the equity swings and being under water, if you are looking to hold it for the long term, who cares what happens to prices in 5-10yrs.  Think of this; if you do plan to sell it in 25-30 years, you will have a lot more experience under your belt, and timing the market will be much easier after living and investing through a couple market cycles.

So after listening to many many of the RE pod casts, and checking out the BP site from time to time, I'm finally jumping into the forums after a number of months.  I'm in a northern suburb of Detroit MI.  My immediate focus is getting my first buy and hold rental, hopefully with little $$ down and a value add opportunity.  Buy and Hold with cash flow is my main focus, especially for the near term. 

I've run my own handyman business for years (not an sales pitch, just letting you know I have some skills).  So I'm open to helping out new contacts by being eyes on the ground if you are out of the area, and need a local professional opinion or things like that.  I'm eager to learn and open to helping out.

My goals:

- No less than 1 (but hopefully 2) SFR rentals by the end of 2020.

-5 years, rental cash flow to cover all my family's essential expenses.

-10 years, rental cash flow to cover full living expenses, and either be in RE full time, or pursuing whatever passion develops in me between now and then.